Once a month, the hungry masses at ‘Iolani School race to the cafeteria for their own finger-lickin’ fried chicken, but theirs is called Mr. Wada’s Mochiko Chicken.

The food craze has been known to cause stampedes once the bell rings for lunch, and it’s rumored that some students beg their teachers for early release to beat the long lines. The dish was further glorified 10 years ago, when one day a month became Mochiko Chicken Day.

The chicken is named for Kevin Wada, general manager of ‘Iolani’s food vendor, Sodexo Hawaii, the man who has valiantly fed the students’ bottomless addiction.

Mochiko chicken was already popular before Wada came to ‘Iolani in 2007, regularly selling out. A year or so later, he was doubling the recipe to 300 pounds of chicken, but it still ran out, causing him a lot of anxiety as no other entree was available.

Each month he added more to the amount until, in 2018, he reached 600 pounds, equivalent to 1,000 servings — and finally, no one was left standing in line unserved. “It took me over 10 years to figure it out,” he said.

Wada said there’s nothing special about the recipe. “I can’t tell you why it is what it is,” he said, laughing. It continues to shock him that students are so crazy about it, and he’s never seen any dish come close in popularity in his long years of food service.

Cafeteria worker Carol Punsalan created the original recipe around 1998; she’s semiretired, but still serving breakfast, unfazed by the chicken’s legendary status, he said.

A bowl (three pieces) with rice sells for $5.50, and a plate (six pieces) with rice and vegetables, $7.75.

Wada began labeling the monthly lunchtime event Mochiko Chicken Day around 2010, and it’s always held on a Thursday because it take four days to make the chicken. One day is to cut the chicken into strips to be marinated overnight; another two days are to bread the strips in panko crumbs and par-fry them. The chicken is finished in the oven on the day of serving (the fourth day), because there wouldn’t be enough time to fry all 600 pounds in time for lunch, he said.

Wada tries to pick a week during the month that includes a Monday holiday, because on those shortened weeks there’s more room in the refrigerators to hold the chicken. No other dish takes as much time to prepare or as much space.

In May Wada made a home video demonstrating how to make a 3-pound batch of chicken, dedicating it to graduating seniors so they can take the recipe wherever they go.

The video turned the chicken into even more of a phenomenon, drawing more than 11,500 views via ‘Iolani’s social media platforms by mid-June, said Michelle Hee, public relations director. The school had asked Wada to videotape a few recipes that students could make at home during the pandemic, as part of a series on social and emotional wellness.

Hee, an ardent fan of the chicken since she attended the school over 10 years ago, said she also knew alumni would love having the recipe because they always request the chicken when they return for school events.

A 2005 graduate on the mainland, Mika Kluth, wrote on Facebook that her chicken turned out pretty well, and worth the drive to another county to buy the mochiko flour, Hee said. “It tastes amazing, and it’s a symbol of ‘Iolani and the community we have at school.”

Dr. Andrew Inaba, a 2007 graduate, agreed: “It’s such an Iolani tradition, everybody looked forward to it.”

He remembers sitting in class, watching the clock and quietly packing his school bag so he’d be ready to bolt straight to the cafeteria once the bell rang. “It was so popular that everybody knew you had to get in line early.”

Inaba’s wife, Kelsie, saw the video on Instagram first and mentioned it. “I said: We gotta make this now! I was super stoked to hear about that. So we made it together. … She loved it.”

They cut the chicken into smaller pieces so there would be more crispy edges, his favorite part.

“It tastes almost exactly like I remember it. It brought back a simpler time, when you could laugh and joke with your friends in the cafeteria — such a good feeling it brought back.”

MR. WADA’S MOCHIKO CHICKEN

3 to 4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into long strips

Panko crumbs (Japanese breadcrumbs), as needed

Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

>> Marinade:

1/2 cup shoyu (Aloha brand preferred)

1/2 cup beaten eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup mochiko flour

1/2 cup cornstarch

1 tablespoon garlic, chopped

Whisk marinade ingredients together until smooth. Add chicken and soak overnight.

Remove chicken from marinade and bread in panko.

Heat enough oil in a pot to cover chicken pieces, to 325 to 350 degrees.

Fry chicken in batches, 4 or 5 minutes per batch, to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Remove charred panko crumbs from bottom of pot between batches. Serves 4 to 6.

Approximate nutritional information, per serving (using 3 pounds chicken, 6 servings, 1 cup panko): 700 calories, 35 g fat, 7 g saturated fat, 155 mg cholesterol, greater than 1,350 mg sodium, 46 g carbohydrate, no fiber, 13 g sugar, 48 g protein